General view of an empty car park at the Riverside Stadium as the EFL Championship is suspended due to the number of coronavirus cases growing around the world – PHOTO: REUTERS

(REUTERS) – Completing the Premier League campaign and getting the new season underway will see much-needed funds flow to clubs in the lower divisions who are struggling due to the COVID-19 shutdown, Brighton & Hove Albion CEO Paul Barber has said.

Football has been suspended since mid-March due to the novel coronavirus outbreak but the Premier League hopes to restart next month, initially without fans attending, after the government opened the door for elite sport to return.

English Football League (EFL) clubs rely much more than Premier League teams on matchday revenue and ticket income and its chairman, Rick Parry, has said playing games behind closed doors could actually be a loss-making venture for some teams.

“If we can finish this season, get next season under way, then all of the solidarity payments that go through the Premier League to the lower levels will hopefully give those guys a boost as well and enable them to get through a very difficult period,” Brighton’s Barber told reporters.

Top flight teams voted to make an advance of 125 million pounds (US$152.68 million) to the EFL and National League sides last month, which included early solidarity payments and parachute payments.

“There are a lot of mouths to feed and there’s not an easy solution… other than getting the games back on as soon as we can, and when it is safe,” Barber added.

“That will then start to turn the economy within football which enables us to make those distributions further down the game.”